Merlin the Dawn of the Death
by Ryydman
Summary: Your only weapon is your sword, your fastest car is your horse, your brightest light is your torch and your closest friend is your fear. How will Merlin and Arthur survive when the whole Camelot, the whole Albion has changed to fast-food chain for living death? No slash. English is not my mother language, so I'm sorry about all the mistakes.
1. And so it begings

Thomas sighed heavily. It has been three days sence his wife had got this horrible disease. There wasn't a cure. Only thing that he could do was try to make his beloved wife feel as comfortable as possible and take care of the kids and house.

But his wife's state went worse day after day. Doctor had said that usually this disease would heal on its own in couple days. It was hard for Thomas to believe that. His wife was so weak that she looked like she was dying. What if the doctor was wrong and his wife was seariously dying?

Thomas stood up like a thousand times that night, walking around in his small home. Children were sleeping. No one would know... But breaking the law made him worry. If someone hears him, he would be sentensed to die like all those evil sorceres who had tried to take over Camelot and feild. His children and his wife would live whitout him.

Thomas looked his small cottage. He didin't want to give up without a fight. If he dies, his children would still have their mother. And besides, there was a chanse that no one will never know. He could make just a small spell and they would live happily the rest of their lives like they always were.

The man walked to the other side of the house, carefully so he would not wake up the kids. Life was quite hard in this far of the senter of Camelot, but they were used to it. Thomas didin't even know anything better. One bed in house, wake up in the morning and working with other villagers so they could get even something to eat. At the night they would fall sickly tired in their bed.

Thomas sat down next to his wife on the bed. He wasn't bitter about anything. Life was hard, but at last he had a wife, kids, roof above his head and most of the time enough food. But now he was losing the love of his life. That was the last trop for him. He was a honest man, why did he have to suffer this kind of lost?

"Everything is going to be allright. I promise", Thomas wispered as he gently toutched his wife's hair. The man swallowed as he closed his eyes. He hasn't used magic for twenty years and he couldn't do anything bigger but just basics.

So of course he couldn't do any kind of healing magic. Those were really far from his limits. Even the most powerfull sorceres couldn'f do them without years of training. And Thomas had trained years so he could just open a door with magic. Learning magic was really hard for orginary human.

Thomas wasn't sure when he actually started to whisper a spell. It felt like he was dreaming and those words just came out of his mouth. He didn't even remember all the words so he made up a few. He didn't believe that this could actually work, so it didn't matter if he said something meaningless in middle of Old Religions words.

The man sighed as he looked his wife again. Nothing seemed happen. Thomas turned quicly to his kids. They were sleeping peacefully without knowing that their father had just broke the law. That would have been really hard to explain.

Thomas jumped when he heard his wife moving. Woman's face looked even more painfull than before and she twisted on bed like she was having a nightmare.

"Shhh, my love. There is nothing to be afraight of", Thomas whispered as he touched his wife's pale and sweaty cheek. Touch seemd to make the brunette calm down a little bit. Actually she seemd far too calm.

"My love?"

Thomas put his hand on his wife's throat. He tried to find her pulse. But it wasn't there anymore.

"No... No... No..", man whispered trying to wake her up. She didn't breath.

His wife was gone.

Thomas tried to fight, but his eyes watered and tears fell on his cheeks. He didn't want to wake his children yet. Not now because their fater was not abel to comfort anyone. The man lifted his wife's limp body against his chest, feeling the thin body turn slowly cold. He moved front and back, crying burning hot tears.

His grief made him blind. He didn't see that his wife actually opened slowly her eyes. She felt her husband's heart beating in his chest...

From woman's throat came a husky, hungry voice, that sound like a growl. She attaced with full power to her husband's throat.

Thomas yelled when a limp body all the sudden attaced to him. He didn't have time to react in any ways so he felt how her blunt teeth sunk into his throat. The woman didn't bite a long time. She let go as fast as she had attaced, but she bite again on the man's shoulder trying to rip as much meat as she could. She didn't seem even notice her husband's desperate fights back.

Thomas yelled and yelled as much as he could with his destroyed throat. He tried to stop the bleeding with his other hand while his wife ripped the meat off of his bones like an angry bear. The man realized that his wife was actually eating him alive.

"Run! Don't just stand there and stare, run!" Thomas yelled to his children, who of course had woke up to the sounds. Now they just stood there, looking with horror on their faces when their mother was eating their fater alive.

Thomas died, lying in his own blood, staring with empty eyes when his wife ran after their kids. She was covered with his blood, but still she wanted more. Young, fresh meat. Living meat.

Couple seconds later, Thomas felt the life come back to his body. He didn't feel pain anymore. He didn't suffer anymore. Every bone in his body screamed for food. Human flesh.

-

Merlin screamed as much as he could. The woman was biteing his chest as hard as she could, trying to get his juicy young heart. Heart, that was beating so fast that it felt like it was trying to get out of his chest by it self. Pain and fear filled the black haired boy's brain, not leaving any room to other thoughts. He just wanted her to stop, nothing more...

"Merlin! Merlin!"

Merlin didn't even realice that he had actually woke up so he sat up with amazing speed. In a heart beat there was however two hands, keeping the thin, fighting boy still. He was ready to bite, kick, hit, curse... He was ready to do anything so he could get away from there...

Strong hands however kept him still, shaking his body really strongly. He was panicing.

"Merlin! Relax, it was just a nightmare!"

The reality reached the panicing brain really slowly. The blue, scared eyes stared a long time into the worrying eyes in front of him. It took a long time before he recognized them.

"Arthur..."

Merlin was choked how weakly he said the prince's name. Everything was so comfusing. Was he still dreaming or was he death?

"Bloody hell Merlin, did you seariously tried to give us a heartattack?"

Slowly, Merlin realiced that Gwaine was on his kneels right next to Arthur. In fact, all the Knights of The Round table, as he playfully called them, were standing around him and they all looked worried.

"A woman... woke up from death... ripped my... husband's... bite the neck... killed her children..." Merlin hasn't calmed down even a little bit. He was breathing heavingly just like he had been rather drowning than sleeping. But the dream felt so real. He could still feel the woman's teeth on his shoulder and how his flesh ripped off of his body the most painfully way you can even image...

"Merlin, you must calm down. It was just a dream, nothing more", Arthur ordered, but he looked still worried. If Merlin had had more energy, he would have made a little fun of that how worried the prince was about his servant. The warlock had to but all his focuse to convise him self about that there were no teeth marks under his scarf.

"Should we take him to Gaius?" Lancelot suggested carefully. If something made Merlin so scared, it could not possibly be anything good. Merlin was after all the most bravest of them all and the most powerfull warlock on earth. And he had gread instings. Normal nightmares could have never made the warlock be this upset.

"We can't, he must go first to check up Ehia's people. They are really sick. Plus Gaius has his hands full with cureing Camelot's people, so he doesn't have time to worry about Merlin's nightmares", Arthur said but he looked like he would rather take his servant back to Camelot. But he didn't have a chanse to do so. The warlock was pale and he was shakeing from his head to toe. The blond let go slowly from his friend's shoulders when he was sure, that the warlock didn't try to run away anymore.

"Don't worry about me, I'm berfectly fine. It.. It was just a dream. It just felt real", Merlin said quicly, trying to confince him self too. The knights looked at him with doubtful look on their faces.

"And this has nothing to do with your magic?" Percival asked carefully.

Merlin jumped a little before he realized that the knights, and Arthur knew about his magic. Well, only Gwaine had accepted it straight away. Lancelot had of course known a long time already. To Arthur it was a hard pieace to bite. Gaius, Lancelot and later Kilgharrah had made the prince belive that if he didn't trust on Merlin, Camelot did not have a future.

Plus Arthur knew that losing Merlin was like losing half of a soul for him. Merlin had been the first person who had had enough courrage to say straight to his face the warlock's opinion about his actions and what to do in difficult situations. Thanks to Merlin, he has learned to listen to his people and make his decisions so they could serve all the people. Not just the noples and their families, like his fater used to do.

Not to mention the countless times when the young warlock had saved the whole Camelot or just the prince's live. Yes, Arthur knew about them now. He own to Merlin his life, so the least he could do to him was make sure that the knights would never tell about Merlin's magic to anyone. His fater would be furious if he knew that his own son was keeping a warlock as his manservant right under the king's nose.

"... I fear so. But this was diffrend. Usually when I sence a powerfull magic around, I woke up. I have never before seen nightmares. In my dream, there was a sorcerer..." Merlin was cut off by Gwaine.

"How you can be so sure that he wasn't a warlock?" All the knights looked back to Merlin, who sighed. He had a feeling that he had explained this before.

"A warlock means a really old creature, who has born with magic. Like me. Sorcerer is a human, who has learned magic. And then there are people, who are capable to use spells because they have been born with a power, that is related to magic. Like Morgana is a seer. She was born with a power to see future. It is one kind of magic."

The knights looked comfused. Just 'sorcerer' wasn't enough to mean all the people who had magic? Arthur, who had already heard Merlin's lesson of useing sorcerer -word, stood up and looked on the sky. The sun was already rising so it was no use to go back to sleep anymore.

"Well, what ever it was, we don't have time to think about it anymore. We must hurry so we arrive to Ehia before dark", the prince said looking back to warlock, who was still sitting on the ground.

"So what if you worry less about your beautysleeps and make us some breakfast. In other hand, if I was you, it would be hard to not to worry about beautysleep. That face would need years of sleep", Arthur teased grinning and kicking Merlin gently with his leg so the warlock got up from the ground.

"If you were me, I would be you. And if I was you, I would lose weight", Merlin give back. That made Arthur's neck turn red.

"Shut up, _Mer_lin."

All the knights laughed as they started to back their things at the same time when Merlin started to make them some breakfast. Only Arthur saw how Merlin tried couple times his neck, chest or his shoulder, makeing sure that there wasn't bleeding bounds that no-one had saw before.

After they ate breakfast and the camp has been backed, the knights and Merlin started to ride to Ehia. Merlin felt all the time that he had eated plate full of snakes instead of stew. The more closer the Ehia they got, the more Merlin was ready to turn back to Camelot. He senced that something was seariously wrong.


	2. Arrival to Ehia

Luckily, only two villages had informed very searious infections. Plus Camelot. But at last they didn't need to travel around every single one of the lower villages. Other villages had had only less searious infections, so the village's own physician was abel to take care of them.

But they got information from Ehia and Aldor about really strong flue, that had got Gaius's attention. The court physician had backed his own medical back to Merlin and send the boy for his mission. Of course Arthur wanted to go with him. He wanted to make sure that the villagers were allright. But Merlin had a funny feeling. He was pretty sure that Arthur wanted also make sure that Merlin was safe. Funny, because the prince knew that Merlin was very capable to take care of himself.

And because the prince was going, Uther had demanded that the knights will go too to make sure that the prince was safe. Uther didn't care about Merlin's safety, but in this situation it was really important to get the court phusician's apprentice in the village alive. Because if he didn't make it, the sickness would influenced the whole kingdom. That would be really bad, if the whole kingdom falls just because of one epidemic.

It was already dark when Merlin and the knights arrived to Ehia. They all were exhausted after riding the whole day but now they could finally rest. Well, knights could rest, Merlin have to start his mission immediately. They have to do this as quick as possible so they could contiune to the next village. They waited if someone was coming to welcome them, but the village seemed almost deadly guiet.

"Are the all villagers got sick or are they already sleeping?" Leon asked wonderingly. The whole village couldn't be sleeping at this time of the day. Usually at this time people were running their last duties before going to sleep. Now the village was completely silent.

"We shouldn't be here", Merlin whispered so quietly that it was really hard to hear. The knights turned to look at him. The raven haired man had felt really uncomfortable the whole trip, but his magic hadn't warned him about a danger. But in the village his magic told him that there was somethig seariously wrong.

"You are such a girl, Merlin..." Arthur said, but he seemed tensed. Every time when Merlin said something was wrong, something bad happend. That was some kind of unwritten rule. "Swords ready."

The knights came down from saddles and took their swords. They were ready.

"Search every single one of these buildings", the prince said at the same time when the knights split up and shecked all the closest houses. There was no one in none of the buildings. Only blood. Lots of, lots of blood.

"What the hell happend here..?" Elyan whispered as he looked into a house, where was blood on the table and the walls, but not a single body. Lancelot looked into the house over the dark-skinned man's shoulder.

"It's impossible to say. But more important: Where are all the villagers? Are they still alive and who did this?" Lancelot said quietly when they returned to Merlin and the horses. The other knights were coming back too.

"Not a living soul. Only blood and more blood", Percival reported. The knights seemed to get even more tense, but no-one was as shocked as Arthur. These were his people and he had no idea what had happend to them. His duty was keep his people safe. It was his responsebility as the prince and as a knight. Now he felt like he had led down the people of Ehia.

"We stay here for a night. We can't help anybody at dark and if we are too tired to fight. But because that what had attaced in here may return, we all must sleep in the same building. In watch, there will always be at last two people. No-one is allowed to go anywere alone. Is that understood?" Arthur gave the orders and everyone agreed to them. The knights left in groups of two to move more beds in one house, where wasn't that much blood as the others. No-one would need these beds for this night, so it would be okay to borrow those and make them feel as comfortable as possible. Arthur tuned to Merlin, who stayed to take care of the horses.

"You knew about this. You saw a dream about what happend here, right?" the blonde asked, but he didn't seem to blame the warlock. In fact he sounded like he was blaming himself. Merlin avoited the prince's eyes.

"I wasn't sure what it was, but after the nightmare, I felt like I really didn't want to came here anymore. Just like something bad was about to happen. But my magic didn't feel any black magic, so I didn't believe that my dream was true. Only now I can feel the magic, but it's not strong. It's floating in the air like really thin mist. Weak, but still there", the warlock said as he took the horses' saddles. After placeing the last saddle on the ground, he turned to face the prince.

"Don't blame yourself. What ever this is, this is not your fault. This is some kind of reasult of using wrong spell to heal a epidemic. And you don't have any part of this. You protect your people best if you start look for a cure and not fall into self pity. You don't have power to see future so you would have knew this would happen and even if you had that kind of power, there would not have been any way to stop this", Merlin said firmly. That made Arthur's feel of quilt ease a lot. Blonde seemed to show something that looked almost a smile.

"Sometimes I almost think that you are wise, Merlin. But then I remember how many times you had knocked your self down by an accident", Arthur grinned. It was his way to thank Merlin about his advise.

"And sometimes I mistake to think you are a clot-pole. But then I remember that you are a clot-pole", Merlin said back while he let horses be free in a small cow fence. There wasn't much space but at last the animals could laid down and sleep if they wanted. The horses could rest before they have to travel again.

"Will we go back to Camelot or will we go to Aldora at the morning?" Merlin asked as he gave some hay to horses. He gave some to cows too, so there would not be fight of food. They should propably let the cows out of the fence when they were leaving, so the cows could look after themselfes while their owners were missing.

"We will go to Aldora, to see if there has been attacks. And if there is, we safe the ones who are still alive. If not, we warn them and make sure that they are ready to defeat them selfs. However, we must go back to Camelot as soon as possible before this dicease arrives everywhere", Arthur said while he tought how quickly this epidemic spread. In Merlin's dream, it speared when people were bitten. So maybe it was in spit. And it was spearing quickly. If you think that at the beginning there was one person sick. Then she bite one other person. There was two people sick. Then they bouth bite one other person. There was four. Four becomes eight. Sixteen... And now it was at last twelve hours when a whole village has got sick and ran to other villages to influance them all. It would be quickly all over the Albion.

"Come, we must look for something to eat before the dark", Arthur said trying not to thing that there would be someone, who was being eaten at the moment. It was the worst end to everyone and Arthur didn't wish even his worst enemies to meet their end like that. Merlin made sure that animals were okay before he ran after Arthur.

Arthur and Merlin looked randomly into one house. After making sure that there wasn't blood thirsty undeath body behind the door, they stepped inside the house and started to look for something to eat.

"Here is some porridge with extra flavour of blood", Merlin raported after peeking in one pot. The boys looked at each other with nervous look. They didn't need to say outloud why they wouldn't eat that blood-porridge even if it was the last food in the village. If the illness spared in the split, it might speare in blood too. Besides it felt disgusting to eat porridge where was more likely it's cooker's blood in it. Not very tempting.

"Let's go to check the village's other side. Maybe there is something that hasn't been filled with blood", Arthur said turning back to the door. Merlin nodded shortly and took his leave after Arthur.

Merlin saw it only for a blink of an eye from the window, but it was enough for him. He quickly pulled Arthur away from the door, forsing him to sit down on the floor with him. Arthur seemed frightened and annoyed when he looked at the warlock.

"What on earth are you..." the blonde started, but Merlin put his hand over Arthur's mouth looking scared. Arthur didn't even protest because now he heard it too: someone or something was moving right behind the door. Heavy, raw breath told them, that the door between them and the thing was so thin that even the sounds came through it like it was only paper. The limping steps stopped right behind the door but the breathing became quicker, like the creature was trying to smell the boys.

Arthur's heart jumped so fast that it was really painful. His grip of his sword became tighter when the creature hold it's breath like it was trying to hear them now. Merlin was sure that it heart his and Arthur's heards pumping like crazy. Or at last it heart their heavy breaths. They bouth jumped when they heard the creature start breathing again and it was moving back and front behind the door. What the hell it was doing?

Arthur looked at Merlin with guestioning look. It hadn't left, but it wasn't right behind the door anymore at last. Was it about to take its leave?

Arthur cried out of the pain and from shock when the door suddenly flew open and hit him on his back. The only thing that he could do, was try to bush back. Merlin was frozen of horror. The door had broken because of the hit and couple of the planks had fallen off. About 30-years-old man's bloody face looked at them with so much anger and hungry. His bloody hand was trying to catch Arthur from everywere it ever could. It seariously put everything it had so it could reach the prince and pull him closer, so it could eat Arthur's fresh meat. Arthur looked at the raven hair.

"Don't just stare there, do something!"

Merlin jumped. He was really powerfull warlock, of course he could beat one living corpse. He just didn't have any idea of any kind of spell that could kill something that was already dead.

Without thinking or saying any spells, his eyes turned to gold. The monster flew back and crached on the fall of house other side of the street. Merlin took his chance and pulled Arthur away wrom the broken door just in time when the beast ran back to them. This time it just ran thourgh the door like it was nothing.

Arthur rised his sword and pulled Merlin behind his back to safety. The boys moved away from the creature as far as they could. But the house was really small. They didn't have any place to run. They were trapped.

The monster yelled with its raw voice when it started to ran towards the boys. Arthur hit it with his sword right through its stomach but the beast didn't seem to even notice it. It crapped from Arthur's shoulders, trying to pull him closer to its mouth. The prince had his hands full when he tried to stay away from the zombie's teeth.

"_Àcwele!_" Merlin shout the spell as loud as he could. His eyes turned gold again when his magic attaced the beast. Merlin usually tried not to use his powers with all streight so it would be hidden from Arthur, but now the prince knew about his magic and he was in danger. The moster must be destroyed.

The living body actually explored when the magic hit it. The blood flew away from Arthur, just like Merlin had hoped. Arthur pulled his sword out of the chopped body and took couple steps back breathing heavily.

"Is it really dead?" the knight asked skeptically. That thing had woken up from the death before, it wouldn't be impossible for it to do that again.

"It's hard to say, but at last it won't be able to bite without its head. Or move without hands and legs", the warlock said also breathing heavily. He couldn't bring himself to remember when he had been this scared before. Luckily the zombie stayed dead this time.

Merlin looked at Arthur with worry. If the prince was bitten, it would be his fault. Merlin was the one who had frozen in middle of the battle. The blonde looked at his hands too, but all the blood was the creature's

"I'm fine, it didn't bite me", the prince said. Then he turned to look at the corpse. Or at last what was left from it. "Do you think that there is more this kind of suprises in this village?"

"It is possible. Look at this leg", Merlin pointed at the zombie's off ripped foot that it has been limbing before. The leg has been bitten almost completely off. "This wound is about two or three hours old. That means that who ever this person was, he was able to survive from these monsters many hours. But eventually he was attacked..."

Merlin jumped when he heard steps coming closer to them. This time it was the knights instead of a zombie. Merlin didn't remember when he had been this relieved of seeing the knights.

"Are you allright?" Elyan asked after looking at the corpse with disgusting on his face. The sight wasn't bretty at all. The warlock and the prince nodded.

"We should go to sleep already. We look for the food when it's not dark anymore. Here might be more these bastards so it's best if we are together when it's really dark", Arthur said when he leated his men back to cottage, that had became theirs for this night.

Merlin made the last, apologizing look on to the corpse. After all, it had been a person just hours ago. Person who might have seen how his whole family was being eaten alive right in front of his eyes. And he couldn't do anything. Then hours later ending up to be this kind of monster himself too.

But there was no time to grive. Now it was time for action. The warlock turned to follow the knights. This night would be long and sleepless.


	3. The child's point of view

It was so cold. Arthur was somewhere between being awake and being in sleep when he tried to find his blanket. It has propably fallen on the floor. However Arthur's hand found something warm right next to him. Half asleep he moved closer that heat, pressing his face and chest against the warmness. It was so much more comfortable feeling than coldness...

"Kröhöm."

Arthur suddenly came back from the sleeping world. He didn't feel tired at all anymore. Slowly his brains understood what his eyes saw: Gwaine and Elyan were looking at him with very confused look. Arthur moved his attention to the heat source where he was still resting his head. It took a long time before Arthur realiced this source of heat being someone's feet. He, the crown prince of Camelot, was keeping his head against someone's feet. How on earth was that glorious?

Arthur quickly pushed the feet away from his face causing the owner of the feet wake up.

"What is going on?" Poor Merlin muttered half asleep when he sat up and tried to focus his tired eyes on the knights. Why were they laughing?

"We know that Merlin is your manservant but pleace, let the innocent boy at last keep his own legs. Besides it would be really bad if you some day get off of the bed with two wrong foot. One is bad enough."

"Gwaine?"

"Get off of the bed with two wrong foot?" Merlin was completely out what was going on. Arthur's face and neck were red and bouth Elyan and Gwaine tried to hold their laughs as much as they could. What the hell was going on?

"No one is allowed to talk about this, is that understood?" Arthur snapped to the knights, who bouth nodded grinning. Of course Arthur would hear about this the rest of his life.

Gwaine and Elyan went to sleep at the same bed were Arthur and Merlin had slept. The warlock and the prince were next on the watch. They had saved a lot unnecessary work on moving only couple king-size beds rather than moving many small beds. Of course it meant that they would have to sleep on pairs but only Arthur had thought it unpleacant. Share a bed with _Mer_lin. The warlock would propably mutter a spell while he was sleeping and make Arthur's hair turn pink or something like that. But when they were sleeping they all knew that Arthur was the unpleacant sleeping partner. He had used to sleep in a huge bed so he just kept kicking Merlin the whole night. The prince didn't even bother to feel sorry for his friend so everything has turned to be allright. To him at last.

"Why is this happening?" Arthur talked the first time after Gwaine and Elyan went to sleep. Merlin looked at the prince but turned quickly back to the window. He knew that Arthur wanted to scream. Scream as much as he could about all these things they had faced together in couple of years. But he couldn't. He was the prince so he couldn't let himself look weak or look like he was losing his hope. Never with anyone except Merlin. Merlin has always been unbeliavable wice. He always said just the right things to make Arthur feel a little bit better again.

"The son pays for his fater's crimes. That is what some people call it. Uther's hate of magic caused that the people were hiding their powers. Then someday they try some spell that is way too hard for them. They can't ask anyone to teach them because they are afraid of Uther's wrath", Merlin said. That actually made Arthur feel much worse if it even was possible anymore. He loved his father, even when almost everyone else hated the King. Merlin however wasn't done yet: "But it's not too late yet. When you are the King, you can fix your father's mistakes. You will bring peace to all kingdoms and you will stop the war between sorceres and people. It's thanks to you that we will get the peace to Camelot and people don't have to suffer like this anymore. And in the end, hopefully, we all may be able to forgive your father."

Arthur looked at his friend without saying a word. Merlin made it sound so easy but to the young prince was under so much pressure. He was just a human. He was just a prince without any kind of power. He didn't have even magic. And he would bring the peace to all the kingdoms. How on earth just one person could do that?

"I can't even stop this dicease. So how I'm supposed to stop all those wars? Many of them are so old that no living person even remembers when they started in the first hand. And how you know that some sorcerer won't attack on me for a revenge?" Arthur asked a little annoyed. Merlin knew that Arthur wasn't really annoyed but worried. Stressed. Maybe even terrified. The warlock smiled to the prince.

"You must believe in yourself. I trust in you. You will be the greatest king that anyone has ever seen. And of some sorcerer attacks at you then I will take care of it. I will be there on your side like I always am protecting you. We will find a cure for this illness. You won't face all of this alone."

It felt like a huge weight was lifted off Arthur's shoulders. Merlin was right. He wasn't alone as long as he had Merlin. So he was actually never alone. Merlin had always stood right next to him in danger, happyness, sadness and in every almost impossible missions where they had been in these years. Always when he felt like the world has came to an end, Merlin gave him the strenght to keep going even in the hopeless battle. Merlin trusted him. The last he could do was trust in Merlin.

"Promise to me something: when I became the king, you will be there to give these advises of yours. And to polish my armor and clean my stables", Arthur said grinning. That was his way to thank Merlin from wise words. Merlin acted like he was thinking hard when he was looking at Arthur.

"I don't know. If some other King gives me a better job, I might not be abel to resist", Merlin laughed. In fact he couldn't leave Arthur even if he wanted to. His Stupidness wasn't just his prince anymore but Arthur was his friend. And you really can't leave your friend even for a better job.

The time flew when they talked about everything what they could think of. They didn't even realice that the sun was rising. Only when Lancelot started to wake up because of the light, Merlin snapped back to reality and woke up the other knights too.

"What we have for breakfast, I'm starving to dead", Gwaine's first words for the morning sounded more like growling. The knights looked tired. No one has slept very well. Who would sleep well in a small cottage where was so weak wood door that a zombie would have been able to just run throught it like it was nothing.

"Lancelot, Leon. You two come with me and Merlin to look for some food. Take just as much as is needed. Here must have some food for people when they came back."

Arthur truely believed that there was a cure for this disease. It other ways his people were doom. Lancelot and Leon nodded takeing their swords in their hands. Merlin went out first.

"Call us if you need any help", Arthur said before he and Merlin went to the other direction and Lancelot and Leon went the other. Merlin and Arthur made their way to a bit bigger house. It wasn't much bigger than the others. Merlin put his hand on the door handle only to find out that the door wasn't even closed. He looked at Arthur who nodded.

It took a while before their eyes got used to the darkness. The cottage didn't offer anything suprising compared to the others. There was blood and marks of fight but not a single body on sight. Only diffrence was that there was a slight smell of rotten meat. Boys stepped carefully in.

Arthur pointed to a thin courtain across the door. It wasn't a big place to a zombie be hiding but it was still on a way. Merlin and Arthur couldn't see every part of the cottage, and that of course made them feel uneacy. Merlin walked slowly to the courtain. Arthur pointed it with his sword ready to defeat them if something attacks at them. The warlock grabbed to the courtain and they looked at each other with a really nervous look before Merlin pulled the courtain off.

"_Ácwel-_",Merlin couldn't shout the spell to it's end. He had seen two people but it took a minute before the realiced that they were really dead. The bodies were two children's, a girl and a boy. A sister and her brother. Bouth kids had same kind of black marks on their throat. They weren't killed by biteing, ripping or by eating alive. They were murdered by choking. The corpses weren't harmed in any other ways. They were just sitting there leading lightly each other. The bodies had started to slowly rot in the heat of summer.

They bouth had their last look frozen to their faces. They were staring right at Merlin with fear, terror and confusion mixed to their faces. Merlin couldn't breath. The boy backed off quickly from the stare of the bodies and on the way he walked on Arthur his back first. The warlock jumped about the sudden impact and tried to move away from the prince as quickly as possible but his eyes wouldn't stop stareing at the children. The prince grapped from his shoulders and forced him to turn away from the bodies and be face to face with Arthur.

"We can't do anyting to them anymore. They are gone", Arthur said with as strong voice as he could. He tried to make his friend calm down. His own voice cracked a little, but he tried to keep it steady. It was bad enough to see innocent people suffer from this... What ever this illness was but it felt even forse to see children suffer from this too. Innocent children should have never be made suffer this kind of thing. Never.

Merlin took a couple shallow breaths before he was able to even try to calm down. Arthur hold his grip on Merlin's shoulders and stopped him from turning to the corpses again. Of course Merlin had seen ill, dead or tortured children before but each time the small terrified faces felt painfull in his heart.

Arthur didn't like to think that he was more used to see dead children. Merlin had never have to kill any kids. Merlin had always tried to sace everyone he vould and avoited unnecassery fights as much as possible. Arthur in other hand had killed so many men, women, children, knights and civilians because his father told him to do it. The young prince was glad about that he sill felt pain in his heart when he saw the small bodies. At last he wasn't completely like his father.

"We should go away from here as quick as we can", Arthur whispered when Merlin's breating has became even. He slowly let go of the warlock's shoulders and looked at him a little bit worried. "Try not to pass out. I will not take you with me to whole way in Camelot. You shall walk behind." Like Athur would ever do that to Merlin.

Merlin smiled.

"This is not a joke."

Without saying a word they turned back to face the kids. Merlin took a deep breath before he walked to the corpses. Arthur looked at the door making sure that there was no one be seen.

"What do you think that happend here?" the prince asked when he turned back to warlock. Merlin was looking at the bruices on the children's necks.

"They were being strangled to the death. With pare hands. My best quess is that the father..." Merlin turned to look at the bloodmarks of the room. He pointed at the door that had been a little bit open when they came here. ".. tried to keep the monsters out, telling his wife to go with their children in the only place to hide in the houce..." Merlin's hand followed the trail of blood that started from the door and ented up in the small kitchen. There was much more blood than on door. "However the monsters came in the house and they attacked to father. They bite, bite, bite..." Merlin pointed at a one place where was really lots of blood. "... He fell, fought but eventually he turned into a monster too..."

Merlin turned to look at the children again. He bite his lips while he thought.

"Their mother was hiding here. She saw what happend to her husband. She didn't want her children to have the same fate as their father, so she decited to kill them..." Merlin's attention turned to a blood trail that started from the kids and went to the door. "... But the monsters took her with them. She is one of them. Why they chosed to leave the kids' bodies in peace is a mystery. Maybe they like only living meat."

Arthur looked at the warlock with confuced look on his face. Okay, he was a hunter, he was really able to read trais. But that kind od story would be made only by really crazy person. But the story was beliavable. At least they had that comfort that if they died natureally their bodies would have peace. Those monsters wouldn't eat their brains it they were dead. The blonde stepped forward and leaned over one body.

Without saying a word he moved the small body on the bed, closing the kid's eyes. Merlin did the same to the other kid. Now the kids looked like they really were sleeping. The boys looked at the children. They didn't have time to make a proper funeral so a small quiet moment should be enough for now. Arthur saw a thin dirty blanked on the floor and took it in his hands. With his servant the prince put the blanked over the bodies.

After this Arthur took a deep breath and looked at the raven hair.

"We should go now."


	4. One gone, six left

The boys took a bit eatable bread and some oats so Merlin could make some breakfast for the knights. It didn't take long before the porridge and bread was ready and the hungry knights ate it all.

"Elyan, Percival. You two help Merlin to saddle the horses. We will travel back to Camelot as soon as possible", Arthur said as quietly as he could but Merlin still heard him.

The knights nodded and rushed to saddle the horses while the other knights made sure that they were safe.

It was clear that they had no reason to go Aldora anymore. The whole kingdom would be suffering from this illness so they should really go to Camelot and warn the King. And tell about it to Gaius so he could start looking for a cure.

But there was just one problem. It had bothered Merlin from the moment they arrivet to Ehia. He hadn't said anything about it because the prince had his hands full of worrying about his own kingdom. He didn't have time to think all kingdoms.

But now the warlock couldn't just be quiet any longer.

"Arthur... I can't go back to Camelot", the boy said shakeing a bit. Arthur slowly turned to face his best friend. Merlin hadn't talked about it but Arthur wasn't stupid. Of course he knew already what was bothering his servant. He just didn't want to make Merlin worry even more.

"Merlin. I know that you are worried about your mother. But right now we can't do anything. We will help your mother by finding a cure for this disease. Eldora is about three day travel from here. We have to go back Camelot as fast as we can", Arthur said. He saw wrom the warlock's eyes how his heart broke. His mother was his only family and completely defenceless against these cannibals.

If Arthur had said that he knew how Merlin felt right now, he would have been lying. Arthur didn't have a mother. He had a father who was protected by army and Uther himself wasn't bad with swords either. It was hard to imagine how he had felt in Merlin's place.

Merlin sighed heavily trying his best not to blame Arthur by his desisions. It was true that it was the best for everyone if they thought the kingdom first and not just his mother's safety. But still he felt pain inside him. He had to turn his back to his own mother. It was maybe the hardest desision that he had ever made in his life.

The warlock bowned a little to the prinve before he turned and went to help Elyan and Percival to saddle the horses. Arthur made a mental note that Merlin never bowned to him unless he was upset or angry to Arthur. He had met Hunith. Merlin had got his selfless, lovable and innocent nature from her. Glumcyness, idiomatic and rudeness was propably from his father.

Quickly three men got horses ready. They were able to leave Ehia a long before the midday. They rode towards Camelot as fast as they could but careful not to run their horses on the exaustion. With this speed they would arrive to Camelot just before the night.

The horses' hooves soft thum against the forest floor made the knights, the prince and the servant relax. It was so hard to think that at the same time there was happening something so horrible around the kingdom. For a long time there was just the silence. How on earth would you feel scared when you had your most trusted friends around you? For hours they just rode thinking about what has happend to all their beloved once and were they okay.

The sun was already falling behind the horicont. They were close to Camelot. They knew it. Merlin felt every single muscel burning after being on horse all day. By looking at the knights he knew that none of them had as much uncomfortable feeling as him. He sighed. Of course it was easy for the knights to sit on a horse because of their fat (muscular) asses...

What happend next, Merlin wasn't completely sure. He felt his horse tense it's whole body and it jumped quickly aside and ran as fast as she could away from there. She was horrified. The warlock had almost fell of his horse but somehow he managed to hold on by holding as hard as he could from her neck. He didn't absolutely have any control over his mare. It just kept running mindlessly forward. It was terrified.

Only luck kept Merlin from falling off of the horse that was running like hell and only just didn't ran on a tree. Only luck kept the mare from falling over and kill them bouth instantly. Only luck guited the horse stay just far enough from the trees so Merlin didn't hit his legs on them.

It took a long time before the raven hair was able to sit back on the saddle and take the situation to his control again. He took the reins on his hand and started to calm the mare.

"Come on girl. You don't have nothing to be afraid of", Merlin talked to the horse and in responsed immidiately. It slowed down and finally it stopped. The mare breathed heavily and was still tense but thanks to Merlin it was calm enough not start to run again.

Merlin heard voices behind him and quickly he turned to look. The cause of the voice was Arthur's horse. It had ran after Merlin's horse the whole time. Merlin swallowed when he realiced that the stallion didn't have a rider. Stallion was jumpy and seemed to be ready to run at the minute when he smelled danger. But it didn't seem to want to run away from mare's familiar safety.

Merlin turned his mare and rode right next to Arthur's stallion and took its reins on his hand. The stallion jumped a couple of times, ready to start ran again but Merlin's mare just gave a soft neigh.

After that the stallion followed the mare without any resisting even when Merlin made them go back where they came. He had to find Arthur and the knights.

It took a long time before Merlin was back to the place where he had lost control of his horse. By trails he came to conclusion that all of the horses had ran off but other horses had ran to other direction. The trails told a story about at last four knights who had fallen off of their horses. Arthur was one of them. The most worrying thing was that there was no sig of Arthur on any of the knights.

The panic hit him like a knife. It three knights and Arthur had fallen off of their horses, they couldn't be far. They weren't able to get away as quick as possible from... what ever attacked them. The other knights were more likely been able to get away from danger on their terrified horses. Those lucky ones.

If Arthur had been there, he would have hitten Merlin. He didn't tought of that there still was many dangers in the forest. He was too consered about his friends to care about his own safety.

"ARTHUR!? LANCELOT!? GWAINE!? LEON!?..." the warlock started to scream the names as loudly as he could. He would have contiuned to do that but he was stopped by two ridiculously strong hands. He was trifted roughtly off from saddle and one hand covered his mouth as soon as he was on the ground.

Merlin fought back as much as he could as the hands tragged him away from the horses. When they were far enough the man pulled him to sit down on the ground.

"Merlin for hevens sake, calm down!" A familiar voice cursed as angryly as he could by whispering. Merlin calmed down in a heart beat. Arthur tightened his grip around him so he was even closer Arthur's strong chest. Arthur still covered his mouth by his hand. When he was calm enough Merlin realiced that Arthur had pulled him behind the trees a good way away from the horses.

He heard someone running towards them. He almost felt the heavy and cracky breathing on his neck. The warlock and the prince swallowed not dearing to move even an inch. They didn't have power to turn around and peek behind the tree to see who there was. Arthur didn't dare move even to take his hand from Merlin's mouth and Merlin was so frozen that he didn't even realiced to protest. Their breaths sounded unnaturally loud. It was more like papers that flew on the wind causing so much noise that everyone could hear them. The heavy breathing sounded like it was comeing closer and closer.

Slowly, really slowly the voice and the steps went away, leaving the prince and his servant in complete silence. Arthur finally took his hand from Merlin's mouth but didn't move any other way. They just tried to calm their breaths a while before Merlin was able to suffle away from Arthur.

"That was close one. Is it really gone?" Merlin whispered while he was peeking behind the tree to their horses. Arthur too looked at the horses and nodded.

"I think so. Let's go before it comes back", the prince said and grabbed from the warlock's shoulder and pulled him right after himself to their horses. Without saying a word they climped on their horses and followed the trails of the knights. They have to find them before they went back to Camelot.

Blood ran off from their faces when they heart a loud yell. It cut the peacefull silence of the forest. Without saying a word the boys kicked their horses to full gallop and tried to find the sourse of the scream.

It was bretty dark already, so it was really hard to see what was going on. They saw only siluettes, but they regoniced six pheasants attacking to three knights. It wasn't hard to guess that those wasn't orginal pheasants.

Arthur pulled his sword to his hand and rode to the pheasants. The sword cut easily one man's throath. That made the blood splash everywhere. The body just kept running without its head for a couple steps before it fell on the ground and didn't move ever sence.

Merlin rode right after the prince eyes shineing gold. Without even a spell his magic throw three pheasants on a rock. There was a disgusting sound of three sculls crushing on a stone. Two knights took down easily the last two zombies.

Slowly Merlin regoniced Leon, Elyan and Percival. The last zombies were killed by Elyan and Percival, but Leon tropped on his kneels right when the fight ended. The knight hold his frist with seariously painfull look on his face.

In a second Merlin had ran to him Arthur and the other knights right behind him. There was a pure horror on the Leon's face. Merlin had never seen the brave knight being so scared. Never.

"Let me see it", the warlock said. Leon didn't fought back when the raven hair took his hand and looked the would. The blood was running unnaturally fast from the cut. Merlin tried not to think that the cut didn't look like it was made by a sword. It looked like Leon has been bitten.

"Elyan, could you get my bag..." Merlin started but Leon cut him off.

"No. Get away from here. There is no cure for this..."

"We don't know it yet. Maybe Merlin will heal you", Arthur in turn cut off Leon. Leon shook his head looking even more painful than before.

"We will not take a risk that I would bite any of you. Gaius will find a cure but you must get to him first. Alive. That way you will help all of us. Go", the knight said lookind right to prince's eyes with searious look. Arthur looked at his loyal, trustfull knight with a lost look. The knight was right. They have to go. But banding a friend felt impossible. Leave a friend behind was too hard for him. That's why he had to make desision not as a friend but as a prince.

He nodded shortly.

Elyan and Percival looked at Leon shocked. They didn't know was there even a cure for this illness. It was hard enough to see innocent citicens suffer from this but seeing Leon, their friend and brother in arms in this condition... It was killing them. This may be the last time when they ever saw the blonde knight anymore. The knights fought back their tears as they nodded.

Merlin wasn't a solder so he didn't even try to fight his cry. Leon smiled to him and hitted lightly the warlock on his skinny arm.

"Take a good care of our prince, Emrys", Leon whispered. That made Merlin smile sadly. He nodded before he stood up. Leon in other hand just leand on a tree comfortably and looked up to his friends. The pain was unnaturally reaching his whole body, not just his frist. But even that didn't make him worry too much. He was calm. He belived that there will be a cure and he would see his friends again.

Without saying a word Percival walked to Arthur's horse and took a rope from Arthur's bag and walked back to Leon.

"Best if you stay here when we return with a cure", the knight said unhappily smileing while he tied Leon up on a tree. Leon laughed.

"Better safe than sorry", Merlin said. He muttered a short spell and the rope turned to a strong chain. That would hold even if Leon struggled as much as he could. Arthur nodded in agreemend.

"We must go now. But I promise that we will return with a cure. For that, Sir Leon, the knight of Camelot", the prince said voice full of respect. Leon looked extremely calm and trustfull even when they all saw how his face were turning white like someone was sucking al the colour from his face. He seemed to be on the edge of dead.

Arthur lead his knights back to horses so they could leave. Merlin however stayed with Leon. He tought that they should stay here as long as Leon was still Leon. No one should face this kind of thing alone. And surely not a friend. Leon however looked at the warlock with demanding look.

"Go Merlin. It's too dangerous to stay here when it's dark. There is nothing even you could do anymore", the knight said smileing peacefully to him. Leon felt how his heartbeat started to slow down dangereously and his mind went slowly blurr.

"At las I can ceep company to my friend for a while", Merlin said as he sat down right in front of Leon. The knight smiled a little but didn't try to change the warlock's mind anymore. The pain in his body started to get worse. He took a deep breath trying to ease the pain. His body started to cramping.

Merlin moved closer to Leon and put his hand on the knight's hand. Leon's grip was so strong that it almost broke bones from the warlock's hand but he didn't even realized this.

"It will be over soon. Next time we see, everything will be back to normal", the warlock whispered. Leon tried to focuse his eyes on him. Merlin saw in his painfull eyes have a little hope. Everything will be allright eventually.

Merlin snapped back to reality when he realized that he was looking in eyes that didn't saw anything anymore. The knight's body was limp. The warlock fought back his tears with boor succsess. He bite his lips as he squesed Leon's hand for a last time.

Suddenly he saw the wound in Leon's frist. Merlin put his hand in his pocked, looking for something usefull..,

His hand found a peace of a fabric. Well, it was better than nothing. The warlock wipped the wound with a cloth and the brown peace of fabric got a new dark colour. Merlin turned to put the cloth back to his pocked.

"MERLIN!"

Every single drop of colour ran off of his face when he turned back to face Leon. His eyes were pure white as was his skin. He looked like he was blind. But still Leon looked straight into his eyes. Merlin was so close to him so he actually could see even the smallest blood veins under the knight's skin. There was no any emotion on Leon's familiar, usually friendly face.

Merlin didn't have time to even fright when Leon yelled with his new raw voice and leand forward to bite the warlock. He had no time to react.


End file.
